Panera Charged Lemonade linked to alleged deaths, lawsuits: Everything that's happened so far

Fast-casual food chain Panera Bread has found itself at the center of multiple lawsuits since late last year regarding its line of Charged Lemonade drinks.

The Charged Lemonades, a set of highly caffeinated drinks in multiple flavors, have been accused of causing serious physical harm to customers who consumed them, even allegedly resulting in death. Two lawsuits, filed in October and December of last year, allege the drink's caffeine contents caused the cardiac arrests that killed two separate people, while a third filed this year alleges the beverage caused permanent heart issues.

While warnings about the product have since been added in-store and online by the company, the drinks are still available for purchase. Recently, Panera's request to dismiss one of the suits was denied by a judge, a sign these cases may take some time to move through the courts. Here's what we know so far.

Another lawsuit:Caffeine in Panera's Charged Lemonade blamed for 'permanent' heart problems in third lawsuit

See caffeine intake in graphics:How does Charged Lemonade compare to coffee, energy drinks?

Sept. 10, 2022: Sarah Katz collapses

Sarah Katz, a 21-year-old University of Pennsylvania student, drank a Charged Lemonade at a local Panera Bread. Having been diagnosed at a young age with a heart condition called QT syndrome type 1, Katz avoided energy drinks, according to the lawsuit filed later by her family.

An avid Gatorade drinker, Katz's family believes she saw the "charged" in "Charged Lemonade" as referring to electrolytes, similar to Gatorade's marketing, and claims she saw no signs indicating the drinks had a high caffeine content. Using her Unlimited Sip Club membership, which allows you to fill your drink cup without additional cost, Katz got the drink.

Hours later, she collapsed and fell into cardiac arrest. She was transported to a hospital where she went into another arrest and died.

Panera lawsuit:Caffeine in Panera's Charged Lemonade blamed for 'permanent' heart problems in third lawsuit

April 8-9, 2023: Lauren Skerritt drinks Charged Lemonade, visits the ER

Lauren Skerritt, an "athlete" who allegedly lived an active life, visited a Rhode Island Panera Bread and drank two-and-a-half Charged Lemonades. Soon after, she began to experience heart palpitations and dizziness, she claimed in a later lawsuit.

After symptoms persisted, Skerritt decided to visit an emergency room the day after drinking a Charged Lemonade drink. There, she was treated for atrial fibrillation, an irregular heartbeat that can lead to blood clots, stroke, heart failure and other heart-related complications, according to the American Heart Association.

Oct. 9, 2023: Dennis Brown suffers cardiac arrest

Dennis Brown, 46, of Fleming Island, Florida, stopped by a Panera Bread on his way home from work. Brown generally avoided drinking significant amounts of caffeine or energy drinks due to high blood pressure, his family later said in a lawsuit.

Also a member of the Unlimited Sip Club, Brown died after drinking three Charged Lemonades and experienced cardiac arrest on his way home.

Brown was also diagnosed with an unspecified chromosomal disorder, developmental delay, and intellectual disability.

Oct. 23, 2023: Katz's family files lawsuit

Sarah Katz's family filed a lawsuit against Panera Bread in the court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia County for wrongful death.

The lawsuit alleged Katz went into cardiac arrest as a direct result of consuming a Charged Lemonade drink. According to court documents, a large Charged Lemonade has 390 mg of caffeine in it, far more than what can be found in drinks like Monster or Red Bull, but was advertised improperly as a "clean" drink with the same amount of caffeine "as a dark roast coffee."

Katz drank the beverage "reasonably confident it was a traditional lemonade and/or electrolyte sports drink containing a reasonable amount of caffeine safe for her to drink," the lawsuit said.

In a statement to USA TODAY, a Panera spokesperson said: “We were very saddened to learn this morning about the tragic passing of Sarah Katz, and our hearts go out to her family. At Panera, we strongly believe in transparency around our ingredients. We will work quickly to thoroughly investigate this matter.”

Panera has since filed to have the case dismissed, a request that was rejected by a judge.

Oct. 2023: Warning labels added

After news of the Katz lawsuit broke, Panera changed labels on the Charged Lemonade products, saying in a statement it had "enhanced our existing caffeine disclosure for these beverages" out of "an abundance of caution."

Clicking through the item description for any of the three flavors of Charged Lemonades on the chain's website leads to an image of the lemonade with a product description warning: "Contains caffeine. Use in moderation. NOT RECOMMENDED FOR children, people sensitive to caffeine, pregnant or nursing women."

The "Charged Sips" as a whole are advertised with the line: "Naturally flavored and plant-based. Contains caffeine," with the title card for each drink also including a caffeine range.

When the warning labels were first added, ad material for the lemonades still compared the caffeine content to that of the brand's coffee. However, the Katz lawsuit pointed out that lemonade nutrition information lists the "regular" size as having 260 milligrams of caffeine and the "large" as having 390 mg, compared to 214 mg in the regular-sized dark roast coffee and 268mg in the large.

Additional warnings have since been placed in-store and the lemonade is no longer self-serve.

Dec. 4, 2023: Second lawsuit filed by Brown's family

Dennis Brown's family filed a lawsuit, alleging that his death was a result of the Charged Lemonades he drank. Similar to the Katz suit, Brown's family alleged that he did not know how much caffeine was in the drink thanks to a lack of labeling on Panera's part.

In a statement to USA TODAY, Panera Bread denied any wrongdoing, saying: "Panera expresses our deep sympathy for Mr. Brown's family," but that, based on its investigation, the company believes "his unfortunate passing was not caused by one of the company's products. We view this lawsuit, which was filed by the same law firm as a previous claim, to be equally without merit. Panera stands firmly by the safety of our products," it continued.

Jan 13, 2024: Third lawsuit filed against Panera

Lauren Skerritt files a lawsuit in Delaware, claiming the Charged Lemonades she drank in April 2023 have caused lasting and "permanent" heart health issues.

Specifically, the lawsuit alleges that Skerritt is now on medication to help control her recurring bouts of rapid heartbeat, shortness of breath, brain fog, body shakes, weakness, and a tremor in one hand.

The lawsuit also claims that Skerritt's ability to work, exercise and socialize has been greatly impacted, and the health issues have even put a stop to her plan of starting a family with her husband.